It was August 20, 1921 (one hundred five years ago today) when Lizzie Markham was washing the huckleberries she had picked.
Elizabeth Biehler had married Alfred W. Markham on April 29, 1917 (a second marriage for both of them). The wedding took place in Sandpoint, and they settled into a new life together on Al’s ranch in the Meadow Creek District.
Alfred (nephew of Richard and Martin Fry) had arrived in the Meadow Creek area sometime before 1900. He is believed to be the first settler there. With no roads, he used pack horses to haul in supplies and equipment for his ranch (we know it as the McGinnis ranch). Al, a trapper, miner, and claim holder, is best remembered as a surveyor. He surveyed for the Spokane International Railroad and the U.S. Forest Service building trails. Al’s sister, Ivy Pearl was married to Sheriff W.F. Dunning. Alfred W. Markham died May 9, 1935.
Elizabeth had come to Boundary County to stay with her relatives – Lloyd Hughes and Pearle Plato (O.V. Plato). Lizzie loved the ranch; and together they raised sheep and cattle. After Al died, she moved into a smaller cabin on the property. When her place sold in the 1940s, Lizzie moved into Bonners Ferry. Elizabeth Biehler Markham died February 28, 1960.
Both Al and Lizzie are buried in Grandview Cemetery, Bonners Ferry, Idaho.